Vasara Longplay (Arcade) [QHD]
140Game Info
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Developer: Visco
Publisher: Visco
Year of Release: 2000
Game Review & Impressions
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Another 2D shooter from the early noughties, Vasara is an intriguing entry in the genre by Visco Games. Despite its ostensibly historical setting, Vasara has you facing off against all kinds of mechanised opponents, laser-firing gun emplacements and other kinds of future tech in some kind of alternate Feudal Japan; pretty cool!
Each of the player character's craft is equipped with typical blaster cannons for ranged combat, but holding down the attack button will begin charging a near-range melee attack instead. The melee attack, once unleashed, has the ability to both destroy and deflect enemy projectiles, which is incredibly useful for dealing with the oppressive levels of flak enemy bosses will spew in your general direction. It's also the principle mechanic for earning the highest possible scores in the game; destroying multiple enemies results in a substantial bonus, although it's generally riskier getting close in to your opponents. The melee attack can be supercharged by collecting sufficient quantities of red gems from downed enemies to fill the gauge at the top of the screen; the next melee attack initiated unleashes a screen-clearing succession of blows which can be used to rack up even higher scores, as well as nullifying most of the enemy bullets of screen.
Similar to other shooters of this era, Vasara spices up the core game loop by introducing a "Prestige Kill" system which allows players to rack up even more points. Killing enemies with flags on their backs will result in a bloodied banner flashing up for the briefest of moments. There are 30 of these flags to collect on each stage, and bagging all of them nets you a super bonus on completion of the round. This can can be quite tricky, given that the flag-bearers don't stick around on screen for very long, so you generally need to pre-empt where they appear and get into position to be able to deal with them as they appear.
My experience with Vasara was very positive. It looks and sounds great, and the core mechanics offer a level of depth that keep the game interesting, without being too overbearing. The fact the melee attack can be used to deflect projectiles is super useful, and judicious use of the skill increases chances of survival, especially against stage bosses. I had a great time with this and encourage fellow shoot' em up fans to go check it out!
Chapters
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00:00 Attract mode
01:00 Stage 1
04:00 Stage 2
07:21 Stage 3
10:24 Stage 4
13:15 Stage 5
16:02 Stage 6
20:47 Ending